The Leigh family is terrified. They’ve been haunted by the ghostly image of
their young daughter, Selena. But how can that be, when Selena is alive and
well, and as frightened as her parents?

With
nowhere else to turn, the Leighs place their hopes in Jessica Backman, who has
dedicated her life to investigating paranormal activity.

Accompanied
by a new partner who claims to be able to speak to the dead, Jessica will soon
encounter an entity that scares even her. And a terror far worse than she
imagined.

Excerpt:

“Kitchen
drawer just closed so hard, the wood cracked. Time is two-forty-eight a.m. I
dared the EB to be more demonstrative and it’s taking up the challenge. The air
smells funky, like burning wires. No signs of smoke.” She stopped. Something
started tapping on the walls around her.

Tap-tap,
pause, tap-tap-tap, pause, tap.

Jessica
continued, using meditative breathing exercises to calm herself, “I hope I
caught that. It’s tapping out in a sequence.” Tap-tap. “Two taps,
followed by three, then one. I’m not sure if it’s some form of Morse code or
the beat to a song or what. It just keeps tapping, and the burning smell is
getting stronger,” she whispered into the audio recorder. Then, much louder,
“Are you trying to tell me something? If you speak into this recorder in my
hand, I may be able to hear you. What does the tapping mean? Or are you just
trying to scare me?”

A
heavy rumble shook the floor beneath her feet.

Tap-tap-tap.

Tap.

Tap-tap.

Jessica
put the recorder close to her lips. “I’m going to have to check the outlets.
The burning smell is getting intense. Something ˗ whoa!”

The
recorder was knocked from her hand and skidded across the linoleum floor. The
hand that had been holding the recorder felt like it had been dipped in a tub
of ice. She gave it a few sharp shakes to halt the pins and needles sensation
that followed.

The
house was once again silent and the darkness seemed to intensify. Even though
her eyes had acclimated to the night, she was finding it harder to make out the
shapes of the furniture around her. It was as if a heavy, black gauze had oozed
throughout the house like an obsidian blob.

She
took a few tentative steps towards where she assumed her digital recorder lay.
The air itself was heavy and she knew she was far from alone. She fought hard
to fight back the tingling dread that threatened to dance up her spine. A part
of her was sure that something was very close behind her. Silently, it
approached with arms wide open, edging closer with each deliberate step. If she
were to turn around now, she would come face to face with all of her worst
nightmares brought to life.

If
only she dared to take one simple peek.

In the
dark.

So
close she could feel the ripples of its intrusive essence caressing the back of
her neck.

Jessica
stopped when she reached the threshold of the dining room and closed her eyes.
She felt like a blind person in a crowded room of silent guests, no one daring
to breathe lest they reveal their presence to the woman in their midst, yet
eager to pounce if she gave the slightest inkling that she was aware of their
proximity. Her heart skipped a beat as she breathed deep. The fight or flight
instinct was battling for control. Her body was in the throes of the primal,
physical ache to flee. It would be so easy to run now. The front door was only
twenty feet away. Just turn a couple of locks and she could be outside.

The
floorboards creaked behind her, a slight groan of wood protesting the weight of
a single, heavy footstep.

Three
more breaths. Her heart rate slowed to a steady rhythm.

Another
creak, this time to her right, near the breakfront.

Jessica
smiled and she felt the tension release its grip from her shoulders.

Breathe
in, hold, breathe out.

Something
hard and small smacked into the glass top of the coffee table.

Breathe
in, hold, breathe out.

The
sound of glass under stress, spider cracks crunching their way across the
surface of the table.

Now!

Jessica
turned quickly and shouted “Boo!”

The
coffee table top exploded in a shower of glass pebbles as she faced the empty
darkness behind her. Bits of glass bounced harmlessly off her leather jacket. A
picture frame flew from the fireplace mantle and crashed into the opposite
wall. All of the kitchen chairs slid out from under the table at once, one of
them falling completely backwards. Jessica turned back towards the living room
in time to see the blinds on the front window part as if someone ran a finger from
top to bottom. Upstairs, it sounded as if a brawl had broken out. The ceiling
fan shook under the pounding of footsteps and falling objects.

The
house was alive and it was not happy.

Why Ghosts Scare the
Hell out of Me

Did you know that almost half the people living in the US
believe in ghosts? In a recent Huffington Post/You Gov poll, they found that
45% of Americans believe that ghosts are as real as Walmart and the deficit.
Other polls have shown that 60-70% believe in life-after-death. Sure, not all
of that ‘living’ entails becoming a shadow haunting their former house, but it
is staggering to see how many of us feel that our souls live on after our bodies
have given up the….well, ghost.

Right now, zombies are the talk of the town, just like
supernatural serial killers (Jason & Michael Meyers), vampires and
werewolves were the rage in eras past. Some great books and movies have come
out of those subgenres of the horror world. But here’s the thing. They’re all
make believe. I know when I go to sleep, Freddie Krueger is not going to slink
into my dreams and choke me to death with Obama’s dirty socks. If you dropped
me in the Transylvanian forest today, the last thing I would be worried about
was blood thirsty vampires. I do see zombies when I go to the supermarket at
2pm on a Tuesday, but most don’t have teeth and none try to bite me.

Now ghosts, they’re another story altogether. I’ve seen one
numerous times in my house, as have others. I was once grabbed by a phantom
hand in an empty hotel room. No matter what their origin, I know they exist.
Are they the dead, a product of a collective unconscious, inter-dimensional
travelers? I have no clue. Like half the people living with me here in America,
I do believe. And when the house is dark and quiet and I get that feeling that
something is standing right behind me, I wish they were as fabricated as the
Mummy.

So, I write about ghosts. My ghosts. Your ghosts. The spirits
you walk through unawares when you enter your bedroom or head to the deli for a
cup of coffee. Because they are all
around you, watching, listening, judging, interacting, maybe even reading over
your shoulder as you consider whether or not to leave the light on tonight.

Review:

I have had and will not have much sleep until I get this book read. Just saying it right now. From page one, it grabs you by the throat and keeps you reading into the night. I love Jessica and her ghost hunting habits and combined with the other elements in the book (not saying-not going to spoil it for you!) it has been a roller coaster ride that I have no intent of stopping. If I was off tomorrow and didn't have a million writing deadlines of my own this week, you can bet I would be holed up with a bucket of movie theater popcorn and a 2 liter Mountain Dew reading my way through this baby. I was to page 54 last night without hardly noticing the time. When I actually looked up, it was 2am and I remembered I had to work in the morning. So, yes. This one is a paranormal drama with multiple elements and a great scare factor that will have you looking a little harder at the dark corners in your house.

5/5 For a great suspenseful read, paranormal elements that wouldn't let go and characters that feel so alive, they have become people I might actually want to know in real life. Dialog and action are perfect! I will be looking for more from Hunter Shea you can bet on that.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

About the Author :

Hunter
Shea is the author of the novels Sinister Entity, Forest of ShadowsSwamp Monster Massacre and Evil Eternal. His stories have
appeared in numerous magazines, including Dark Moon Digest, Morpheus Tales
and the Cemetery Dance anthology, Shocklines : Fresh Voices in Terror.
His obsession with all things horrific has led him to real life exploration of
the paranormal, interviews with exorcists and other things that would keep most
people awake with the lights on. He lives in New York with his family and
vindictive cat. He waits with Biblical patience for the Mets to win a World
Series.

It’s tough being a faery in New Orleans, a city fraught with vampires… especially when their very existence drains your life-force.

Willow Rhoswen, owner of The Fated Cupcake and part-time vampire hunter for the Void is having a rough week. Four years after her twin brother’s mysterious death, Willow’s life is threatened and the director saddles her with a new partner—her ex-boyfriend, David. To her horror, he’s turned vamp, which causes her physical pain whenever she touches him… and any other specimen of the undead.

In order to save Willow’s life, David agrees to turn double agent against the most powerful vampire organization in New Orleans. Or so he says. And she’s convinced they know something about her brother’s death. Unsure where David’s loyalties lie, she turns to Talisen, her childhood crush, to help her solve the mystery.

Caught between two gorgeous men and a director who’ll stop at nothing to control Willow’s gifts, she’ll have to follow her instincts and learn who to trust.

Otherwise, she risks losing more than just her life.

About the Author

Deanna is a native Californian, transplanted to the slower paced lifestyle of southeastern Louisiana.

When she isn't writing, she is often goofing off with her husband in New Orleans, playing with her two shih tzu dogs, making glass beads, or out hocking her wares at various bead shows across the country.

Thursday, May 9, 2013

How does a thirteen-year old become
the most popular kid in 8th grade? He trains a zombie to be a pet... And that's
exactly what Max Taylor plans to do, even if he had to lie, steal, and lose his
best friend in the process.

“Training a zombie is not a stupid idea. Everyone will be so
jealous and they’ll want one. But we’ll be the only ones who can train them.
Not only will we be popular, but we’ll be rich,” said Max, quickly changing the
conversation away from Kelly’s pool party as fast as he could. It irked him
that Eddy Pratt, the geekiest kid in school got invited to the party and he,
Kelly’s soon-to-be boyfriend, didn’t. How could Eddy Pratt be ranked higher
than him on the school social ladder? How could Chad get invited and not him?
It didn’t make any sense.

Max banged his fist against his head. It did too make sense.
Eddy didn’t get invited because he was cool or anything like that. He got invited
because his dad’s a zombie exterminator.

“Training a zombie like it’s some sort of pet is not only
the most stupid idea I’ve ever heard, it won’t work. No way!” Chad opened his
locker and put several books inside. “All you’re gonna do is break a whole lot
of laws. Besides, I’ve already told Mr. Carter we’re doing an experiment to
show how volcanos create islands.”

“And how is showing how volcanos create islands going to
make up popular?”

“It’ll win us the science fair.”

“But if we train a zombie, we’ll not only win the science
fair, we’ll be doing the town a huge favor.”

“How? By getting ourselves put in jail or worse like—you
know—infected? No! Thank! You! There are rules about zombies for a reason. They
are extremely infectious…”

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

I live in Texas with my husband,
son, and two cats who think they run the place. I read, write, play Texas
Hold’em poker (I'm actually part of a local league), and occasionally I compete
in BBQ competitions with my husband. Our team name is Outcast Cookers. I also
teach in a public school.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

“Featuring an assemblage of super-natural baddies and two terrifying villains,

Cornell’s foray into dark fantasy isn’t for the faint of heart, but it’s one absorbing, brilliant read. Even with four principal characters, Cornell knows how to go deep with each, switching among their perspectives and steadily building the reader’s emotional investment. If this is just the series opener, I can’t wait to see what’s coming in book two.”

-- RT book review, 4 ½ stars and Top Pick!

Paul Cornell is a British writer best known for his work on the television show Doctor Who, most notably for penning three Hugo Award-nominatedepisodes, as well as several spinoff novels. This is why TOR is proud to announce the release of Cornell’s latest fantasy novel LONDONFALLING (A Tor Hardcover; On Sale: April 16, 2013)!Police officers Quill, Costain, Sefton, and Ross know the worst of London—or they think they do. While investigating a mobster's mysterious death, they come into contact with a strange artifact and accidentally develop the Sight. Suddenly they can see the true evil haunting London’s streets.

Armed with police instincts and procedures, the four officers take on the otherworldly creatures secretly prowling London. Football lore and the tragic history of a Tudor queen become entwined in their pursuit of an age-old witch with a penchant for child sacrifice. But when London’s monsters become aware of their meddling, the officers must decide what they are willing to sacrifice to clean up their city.

The Interview:

1. What inspired you to write LondonFalling?

I wanted to write something set in the modern world, with a group of professionals (in this case undercover police officers), encountering the supernatural. The way their procedures and tactics help them get past their shock and terror is what interested me most.

2. Are you a panster or a plotter?

I don't know what a panster is, but I assume it's a sort of cook. I do all the cooking for my family. And I'm going to call it that now. I'm going to say 'well, I'm not much of a panster, but I can make a great jambalaya'. I actually plot in vast, enormous detail before writing a book, then have to horrifyingly revise it when the writing of that plots unravels it. But I do have a sheet showing what I'm meant to be doing at all times.

3. Open your book to any page and tell us what is happening.

Okay, randomly, page 232 of the UK edition: my broken genius of an intelligence analyst, Lisa Ross, has just learned something terrible from a woman in the remains of a Victorian dress at a New Age fair, having had the 'Tarot of London' read for her. While her boss, Detective Inspector Quill, is having a punch up outside with a man who can use vanes to make the winds hit him.

4. If you were going to take your characters out to dinner, where would they like to go and what would they eat?

A police pub near Gipsy Hill police station, where they're based, like The Black Sheep. They'd have pub grub, heavy on the carbs, and three or four 'pints of therapy'.

5. What is your favorite ice cream flavor?

I'm lactose intolerant, but I will risk the wrath of my stomach for a Raspberry Ripple.

6. Do you have any hobbies for when you are not chained to the computer?

I love cricket, and run a fantasy cricket league, so I follow the scores avidly. I don't get to watch as often as I'd like, because we have a six month old baby, and our lives are not our own. (What did I do with all that spare time?!)

7. If you have pets, tell us about them.

I don't! Erm, sorry.

8. What has been the toughest part about being a writer and do you try to balance your writing life with a day job?

I'm a full time writer. The toughest bit is actually the plotting. If you get that right, then everything else is easy. I've just had to write two plots for two different things in a week, and after that I felt like I'd been attacked with hammers. (Without wanting to belittle the experiences of those who've actually been attacked with hammers. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.)

9. What advice would you give someone who is trying to write a novel length piece for the first time?

It's about memory. It's remembering what everyone's motivation was the last time you saw them. It's about remembering how the whole thing feels while you're writing a small piece of it. If you get an awful feeling, like you're a terrible writer (some people call this 'writer's block', but I don't believe in that, because this is an alarm, not an off switch), then read back, not the bit you're on now, but from a few pages back. Your brain is telling you you've done something wrong, and you've been building on top of it for a little while. Or maybe that's just me.

10. What is on your writing horizon?

I've just delivered the sequel to LondonFalling, which is called The Severed Streets ('Jack the Ripper is back, and this time he's only killing rich white men'), and I write the Wolverine comic for Marvel every month. Apart from that, there are a few lovely things I can't talk about, and my new Wild Cards story, 'The Elephant in the Room' will be on Tor.com next month.

Stay tuned for a review of this awesome book. I have started it and don't anticipate much sleep in the next few days! :)

Selling your soul has never
been so charming and Mark throws in a little something to sweeten the pot, his
girlfriend Naomi.

Sentenced to death at the
hands of a demon, Naomi Hawk has a firsthand lesson in despair and betrayal in
Mark’s deal for fame with all the trimmings. Deep in the clutches of the
underground brotherhood, Naomi's light is coveted for the Master's gain.

When she slips and falls
eighty stories from a precarious ledge, Naomi resigns herself to the inevitable
impact and death by shattered bones. Before she can escape her demons in
eternal slumber, something sinister plucks her from the plummet, stealing her
out of the night to sacrifice her forever to the shadows.

“You’re more than welcome to join me,” I
said when she showed no signs of moving.

Her mouth opened and she glanced back
toward the living room. “When?”

“Right now,” I said, knowing she wasn’t
referring to my offer.

She rolled her eyes. “When did you paint
that mural?”

“A long time ago,” I said. “Now, are you
going to join me or not?” This time I turned toward her, giving her the full
view and I smiled at the way her gaze bounced, her eyes widening a fraction
before inching their way back up my chest to my face. Her cheeks bloomed and I
cocked an eyebrow at her.

She pressed her lips together and slammed
the door, marching out of the room in a huff.

I chuckled and ran the soap over my chest,
running my fingers over what was left of the welt on my skin. The vampiric
healing powers still amazed me enough that I missed the shift in the air around
me.

Nails scraped my back and I jumped,
swinging my head in the direction of the disturbance. Her wide eyes met mine
and I turned, drinking her in from head to toe. Exquisite was the only word
that popped into mind and when her fingers touched my chest I reached, covering
her hand and holding it against my skin.

“What are you doing?” I whispered because
having her undressed and this close put me at a major disadvantage.

“I’m saying thank you,” she said and her
hands moved lower.

Catching her wrists, I warned, “Naomi,
don’t start something you can’t finish.” My body responded anyway and she
closed the distance. Her lips grazed my chest and I closed my eyes, releasing
her and surrendering to her exploration.

When her tongue trailed lower, I recalled
the memories of her ex and my eyes snapped open. As much as the thought of her
taking me in her mouth thrilled me, I didn’t want to be that memory and I grabbed her by the shoulders, pulling her up to
face me. She wasn’t one of the common harlots from my past that I let drop to
their knees before me.

No, Naomi was different and I wanted more.

“You do not have to do this just because
you aren’t ready for anything else.”

Her dark eyes met mine and I traced the
frame of her face with my fingertips, studying every curve. Leaning down, I took
her lower lip in my mouth, sucking gently before shifting and delivering a kiss
that started as tender and rich as her blood, but it soon escalated into an
all-consuming heat and I could envision living in this bliss for the rest of
eternity.

I had lied to her today.

Fear wasn’t the only deep emotion I had
encountered since I plucked her out of the sky, this need to connect, to love
again overwhelmed me. The irony of her name and the form she turned into added
to the feel that fate had prepared this feast just for me.

Zombie versus Vampires Guest Post:

My Night Hawk blog tour is winding down and in looking at Zombiegirl's
blog, I figured I'd take the time to lament on what would happen to the vampire
if a zombie apocalypse occurred.

Which would you want to be in the fight for world domination?

Me, I'd opt for the vampire, especially those outlined in Night Hawk,
because, while they crave blood, they are still alive. A zombie is an animated corpse and that just
gives me the willies. However, in this
"what if" scenario, the vampires would be another food source for the
zombies.

The vampires in my Night Hawk series are fast and strong and don't age
because their cells are frozen by the shadow virus. They heal within minutes and my main
characters have another special ability that would aid in their survival
against a zombie attack. However, they
have the drawback of being highly allergic to the sun, so if a zombie found
them during daylight hours, they might not fare so well.

In Night Hawk, a vampire bite is toxic, but the ingredient needed to
pass on the shadow virus is the vampire's blood, not his bite.

Before I explore that, let's take a look at zombies in recent
literature and entertainment. The old
school zombie from Dawn of the Dead were slow moving and clumsy. However, if you look at the more recent
renderings: Zombieland, The Walking Dead,
Hollowland and even a much scarier brand - the ones from I am Legend - these suckers move fast, but they're limited
to the speed and strength they had as humans.

Now, in all of these instances, a zombie bite turns you into the
walking dead. So, it's easy to surmise
that a zombie bite is just as toxic as a vampire bite. The only difference is that a vampire bite
won't turn you into a vampire, it will just kill you. Whereas a zombie bite not only kills you but
turns you into a mindless monster.

So if a zombie did get a bite in against my breed of vampire, that
could potentially create a new and extremely deadly species...the Zompire. A zombie-vampire hybrid. The entertaining thought here isn't what
would happen to the zombie, but what would happen to the vampire.

It's one thing to think of a mindless killing machine now armed with
inhuman strength and speed, but imagine the same bloodlust armed with
intelligence?

The human race would perish in no time.

Hmmm, I think I just found an
interesting plot line for a future novel.

In the meantime, check out my current novel Night Hawk:

Selling your soul has never been so charming and
Mark throws in a little something to sweeten the pot, his girlfriend Naomi.

Sentenced to death at the hands of a demon,
Naomi Hawk has a firsthand lesson in despair and betrayal in Mark’s deal for
fame with all the trimmings. Deep in the clutches of the underground
brotherhood, Naomi's light is coveted for the Master's gain.

When she slips and falls eighty stories from a
precarious ledge, Naomi resigns herself to the inevitable impact and death by
shattered bones. Before she can escape her demons in eternal slumber, something
sinister plucks her from the plummet, stealing her out of the night to
sacrifice her forever to the shadows.

Thank you for swinging by Zombiegirl Shambling and listening to my
ramblings.

Until next time,

Ciao.

JET

Review:

This book is a romp through the darkness that dwells in the deepest shadows of the night. It was a fun read with some dangerous twists and turns. The blend of vampires and demons battling it out was harrowing and made for an enjoyable afternoon read.

3/5

About the Author:

J.E. Taylor is a
writer, a publisher, an editor, a manuscript formatter, a mother, a wife and a
business analyst, not necessarily in that order. She first sat down to seriously write in
February of 2007 after her daughter asked:

“Mom, if you could do anything, what would you do?”

From that moment on, she hasn’t looked back and now her writing resume includes
a more than a dozen published novels along with several short stories on the
virtual shelves including a few within eXcessica anthologies.

In addition to being co-owner of Novel Concept Publishing

(www.novelconceptpublishing), Ms. Taylor also moonlights as a Senior Editor of
Allegory (www.allegoryezine.com), an online venue
for Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror. She has been known to edit a book or
two and also offers her services judging writing contests for various RWA
chapters.

She lives in Connecticut with her husband and two children and during
the summer months enjoys her weekends on the shore in southern Maine.

About Me

Dana Wright has always had a fascination with things that go bump in the night. She is often found playing at local bookstores, trying not to maim herself with crochet hooks or knitting needles, watching monster movies with her husband and furry kids or blogging about books. More commonly, she is chained to her computers, writing like a woman possessed. She is currently working on several children's stories, young adult fiction, short stories and is trying her hand at poetry. She is a contributing author to Ghost Sniffer’s CYOA, Siren’s Call E-zine in their “Women in Horror” issue in February 2013 and "Revenge" in October 2013, a contributing author to Potatoes! (upcoming), Fossil Lake, Undead in Pictures, Potnia, a funny ghost story anthology by Crushing Hearts Black Butterfly Press, Dark Harvest,Wonderstruck, Shifters: A Charity Anthology, Holiday Horrors and the Roms, Bombs and Zoms Anthology from Evil Girlfriend Media. Dana has also reviewed music for Muzikreviews.com specializing in New Age and alternative music and has been a contributing writer to Eternal Haunted Summer, Nightmare Illustrated, Massacre Magazine, Pagan Living Magazine, The Were Traveler October 2013 edition: The Little Magazine of Magnificent Monsters, the December 2013 issue The Day the Zombies Ruled the Earth. She currently reviews music at New Age Music Reviews and Write a Music Review.